WWII weapons, Luger, mauser, enfield HELP!

[seanlim]

I'm new to this forum. My grandfather brought back a few weapons during his tour in Southern France during world war II.

The first is the most rare which is a 1937 s/42 Luger that has matching serial numbers and has a blue tint to it which I read makes it more rare. How much is this worth?

The other is a German 8mm full length Mauser. I know it is German because it has swastikas stamped in different areas on the receiver. The wood is in good condition with absolutely no rust or damage. How much is this worth?

The next is a British 308 Lee Enfield. Not sure what model but the wood is in condition with no rust of damage. Whats this worth?

The last I am not sure what type of weapon it is. Its a 9mm handgun that looks like a 1911 .45 but its not. It has swastikas stamped on it as well. It also has what looks like an eagle stamped on it with straight wings. Anyone know what this is? Someone once told me it was a handgun built in Poland after the Germans invaded it. Does this sound correct????


Id appreciate any kind of help as these weapons have been just sitting in my safe. My father handed them down to me from my grandfather. Remember all of these weapons were collected as trophies by my grandfather in southern france during the war. These were not purchased afterwards and are the original weapons, not replicas. Thank you for you help!!!!!

P.S. I dont plan on selling any of these weapons because I myself are a collector. I just want to know if I should put these in a maximum security safe.

 

[murdoc rose]

on the unknown its probably a p38 but I do suggest putting up pics of everything.

 

[earlthegoat2]

If the Enfield is in fact a 308 as opposed to a 303 then it is most likely an Ishapore Arsenal 308 conversion rifle. Value of 200 possibly up to 400 given certain variables that could be ascertained through the viewing of pictures.

 

[Mp7]

A polish "RADOM"?

If it is indeed not a .303 Enfield ... then it get strange.
How did that rifle make it to that time and location?

 

[Jim Watson]

We really need pictures to tell you for sure what you have.

An all matching 1937 Luger could be worth $1000-$2000.

An unaltered WW II Mauser could be worth several hundred bucks.

Enfields are .303 caliber. If yours is a .308 it is Something Else.

You may well have a Polish Radom. There are several different versions of the gun, worth several hundred dollars to over a thousand.


There were a lot of things done to souvenir guns that reduce their value to collectors.
If the blue tint on that Luger came out of an American gunsmith's shop, cut the value in half. A little sanding and polish on the rifle stocks, likewise.

Please post pictures, it sounds like Grandpa left you a nice collection.

 

[rondog]

Could also be a Nazi Hi-Power? I hope you're not asking for values with the intention of just selling these treasures and family heirlooms to raise some cash.

 

[Beerme]

most likely
its a damn shame that some people care so little about their family history

 

[jimmyraythomason]

I hope you're not asking for values with the intention of just selling these treasures and family heirlooms to raise some cash.

If he was that is his business. But he said this in the original post

dont plan on selling any of these weapons because I myself are a collector. I just want to know if I should put these in a maximum security safe.

most likely
its a damn shame that some people care so little about their family history

That is awfully presumptuous.

 

[Jim K]

Each of those guns could have a value varying from near nothing to over a thousand or even much more. Without pictures, anything we come up with is a guess,

Jim

 

[seanlim]

As I said in my original posting I do not intend on selling any of these. They are now my inherited collection and I want to know exactly what I'm dealing with here. Couple of corrections aswell. The enfield is in fact a .303, my mistake. Also Mp7 also positively identified the other handgun as RADOM. It says it right on the handgun i just never noticed. I will have to post pictures later as the collection is en route from my home town in california. I will post as soon as I receive them.

 

[rondog]

Glad to hear you're keeping them! Too many people only see dollar signs in things like these. That's why I can't leave any of my guns or valuables to my stepkids....they'd just be sold within minutes at the closest pawn shop for the first cash offer.

 

[Jim K]

It is very unlikely that a British Enfield was a war souvenir weapon. GIs were allowed to bring back enemy weapons, were strictly prohibited from bringing back U.S. or Allied weapons and doing so was considered theft and punished. Yes, it was done, but not nearly as often as thought. And yes, I can think of scenarios where almost anything COULD have happened, but the fact is that most U.S. and Allied weapons in the possession of WWII vets were bought in the U.S. after the war.

Jim

 

[ol' scratch]

I'm new to this forum. My grandfather brought back a few weapons during his tour in Southern France during world war II.

The first is the most rare which is a 1937 s/42 Luger that has matching serial numbers and has a blue tint to it which I read makes it more rare. How much is this worth?

The other is a German 8mm full length Mauser. I know it is German because it has swastikas stamped in different areas on the receiver. The wood is in good condition with absolutely no rust or damage. How much is this worth?

The next is a British 308 Lee Enfield. Not sure what model but the wood is in condition with no rust of damage. Whats this worth?

The last I am not sure what type of weapon it is. Its a 9mm handgun that looks like a 1911 .45 but its not. It has swastikas stamped on it as well. It also has what looks like an eagle stamped on it with straight wings. Anyone know what this is? Someone once told me it was a handgun built in Poland after the Germans invaded it. Does this sound correct????

Id appreciate any kind of help as these weapons have been just sitting in my safe. My father handed them down to me from my grandfather. Remember all of these weapons were collected as trophies by my grandfather in southern france during the war. These were not purchased afterwards and are the original weapons, not replicas. Thank you for you help!!!!!

P.S. I dont plan on selling any of these weapons because I myself are a collector. I just want to know if I should put these in a maximum security safe.

The Polish '1911' is probably a Radom.

 

[jimmyraythomason]

Also Mp7 also positively identified the other handgun as RADOM. It says it right on the handgun i just never noticed.

The Polish '1911' is probably a Radom.

hmmm..could be...

 

[seanlim]

I know for sure it is a RADOM because it has V/S written on the handle and it says RADOM on the side. I've shot it a few times and shoots great. The 8mm Mauser and the Luger are amazingly accurate. The mauser hurts like a mother though with that metal butt plate.

 

[seanlim]

Pictures finally!!!!

Here are some pictures of only the mauser and the lee enfield. The pistols are still en route. Okay, so I have taken several pictures of every marking on the each rifle. I don't know what they all mean except for obviously the swastikas and that all serial numbers match on the mauser. I just got back from a gunsmith here and he said that the mauser has what is known as a "duffel bag cut". Apparently the rifles were too big to fit in a sea bag so the soldiers would cut the mauser at the ring and then repin them when they returned to the states. Any additional information you can give me on each rifle would be appreciated. Also, the guy at the gunsmith said that he hadn't seen the triangle stamped in the serial numbers or the swastika on the part where the receiver slides in. Thanks in advance!

 

[seanlim]

more pictures

more mauser pictures

 

[seanlim]

mauser pics

more pics

 

[seanlim]

mauser pictures

final load of pictures

 

[jimmyraythomason]

Was there no stampings or crests on TOP of the receiver ring? Nevermind, the pictures had loaded after I left the thread and came back.

 

[seanlim]

Enfield pics

some pics of the enfield.

 

[seanlim]

enfield pics

more enfield pics

 

[seanlim]

New information!!!!

Okay so I found something interesting. DOing more research on the "mauser" I found that it is probably actually the Chinese Type Zhongzheng rifle. Produced in China for their army, they were going off blueprints of the Mauser K98! That is why this rifle looks identical in every way except for the serial numbers and markings! The Chinese actually used a backwards swastika to mark the rifles. During the war my grandfather barely spoke English when he joined the Army so they put him in an all Chinese unit. Could this have been the rifle he used during the war? Was it standard issue for Chinese infantry in U.S. Army???

 

[hso]

If he was in the US Army then he would have been issued a US rifle in a US caliber instead of a Chinese rifle in a logistically difficult to support caliber.

If he served in the Asian theater he could have brought it back as a souvenir solely because it was Chinese considering his ancestry. Proud of the Chinese people pushing the Japanese out of the mainland, etc.

 

[Southern Trev]

Lee Enfield

Hi Seanlim, I'm new here to. It sounds like you've landed the jackpot with your weapons, I can't help you much with the German weapons but the Lee Enfield will most likely be chambered in .303 British, the Model numbers will be stamped in places like the steel band behind the trigger guard; on top of the receiver in front of the breech and/ or on the side of the butt stock, models include #1,2,3,4 and #5 which are a bit harder to find. these rifles as I'm sure you're aware were produced by heaps of different companies around the world including the US, Australia, England (Obviously) and I think India ( I'm still not too sure about that last one) Brand names include Enfield; BSA; Parker Hale;Lithgow and more that I'm still learning about. I reckon you'd do well to get these arms valued by a pro even if just for insurance purposes, I think it's a little difficult for anybody to give you an accurate assessment online without seeing the items, It's sounds like you've got some real gems there and I wish you luck with you're task, Cheers Trev.